Read Online A Bear of a Reputation by Ivy Sinclair - Free Book Online

is conducive to that, and obviously, if you are living all the way out here, you don’t want to mingle too much with the civilians.”
    “When shifters first came out, there was a lot of anxiety and concern for their safety,” Lukas said as he brought the truck to a stop next to the squad cars. I looked down at them from my perch in the cab. They were empty. “It made them feel safe to be here with their own kind, and Markus was glad to oblige. But he also wanted to ensure that we didn’t hole up out here and raise any concern for the broader community of Greyelf. It was important that we still participate with all the species. That’s why he never allowed any building permits for shops or restaurants out here. There’s a small convenience store inside the lodge for regular necessities, but otherwise we shop in Greyelf for everything we need.”
    It hadn’t escaped my notice that Lukas had started using a plural “we” when talking about himself and the shifters of White Oaks.
    “So people aren’t forced to live here?”
    Lukas snorted. “I lived next door to you for eight years. Bea’s been in her house for twenty-five years. Even after coming out, she preferred to be in town. It’s just a lifestyle choice. It’s easier to go native out here, and there’s a certain freedom that you feel being able to shift at will whenever you want.”
    This was yet another side of Lukas that I had never seen. When we were young, he had constantly battled the fact that he was a shifter. He said he never wanted to be born that way, and he was angry to have been burdened with that fate. Now it seemed as if he had reconciled himself to it and was even comfortable with it.
    He caught me looking at him with my questioning gaze before I could drop my eyes. “Look, I know I was an adolescent prick about the whole thing, but it really is amazing when you think about it. I’ll show you sometime if you’d like.”
    The idea of seeing Lukas in his bear form had crossed my mind more than once. I wasn’t sure if I would be afraid or attracted to him even more. It was a gamble that I hadn’t been willing to take when I was younger, but if I was going to get the real inside scoop of what it was like to be a Grizzly, I’d need to see someone shift.
    “Maybe later,” I said with a weak smile.
    A shadow crossed Lukas’s face, and he nodded. He climbed down out of the truck and somehow managed to make it to my side before I even had my door all the way open. He put his hand up for me to hold as I got down, and I was planning to ignore it, but as I shifted my weight and started to move downward, I felt a rush of dizziness that had to be the aftereffect of the wine.
    Lukas grabbed my waist and gently guided me to the ground. I stood there for a moment dumbly staring up into his eyes, and I knew that I wanted him to kiss me again.
    “Easy does it,” he said. Then he pushed me gently aside so that he could shut the door. “Stay behind me, and like I said, don’t say anything.” He turned on his heel and headed for the door to the lodge. I had no choice but to follow. I cleared my throat and tried to swipe a hand over my hair. I wished that I had a minute to stop by the ladies’ room. I was certain that after the little make-out session in the truck on the way over, I appeared as if I had been thoroughly kissed. Then I realized with a start that it was okay. I was supposed to be with Lukas, after all.
    I didn’t think about the full implications of that until I was standing slightly behind him a few minutes later as he confronted Sheriff Monroe in what appeared to be the lodge’s lobby area. I saw that Billy had already arrived and was standing off to the side with a quizzical look on his face when he saw me. I wasn’t sure when he’d had time to change, but he was wearing his official Greyelf police uniform. I had to admit that he looked good in it, but even that wasn’t enough to spark any kind of physical desire inside me. I